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From: singer@endor.harvard.edu (Richard Siegel)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Compiler efficiency
Message-ID: <3105@husc6.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 4-Nov-87 08:59:10 EST
Article-I.D.: husc6.3105
Posted: Wed Nov  4 08:59:10 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 7-Nov-87 11:02:44 EST
References: <3987@watdragon.waterloo.edu> <1881@dasys1.UUCP>
Sender: news@husc6.UUCP
Reply-To: singer@endor.UUCP (Richard Siegel)
Organization: THINK Technologies, Inc., Bedford, MA
Lines: 44
Summary: LightspeedC *does* smart-link applications!

In article <1881@dasys1.UUCP> raylau@dasys1.UUCP (Raymond Lau) writes:
>Although not a compiler efficiency problem, I have noticed that when LSC
>links together a file which uses a certain library, it includes the entire 
>libary even if only one procedure/func in the lib is actually called.  
>When it links in a project, each obj
>ect in the project (or whatever you wish to term it) is linked in in 
>its entirety even if only one proc/func w/in it is actually called.

	This is correct, and that is done when doing a Check Link on a project
for the simple reason that it's much faster.

>I know that this id documented...  I'd guess that it's probably done bec. 
>it's faster....  and I can understand that.  But when the Build 
>Application (or code/da) is invoked, I feel that we should have the option 
>of having the final form of the prgm optimized.

	In fact, LightspeedC *does* smart-link on a project-file basis;
if there's a module in a project, and that module contains routines that
never get called, that module will not get built into the final application.
Likewise, if you're using a project file as a library in another 
project, that library will be smart-linked as well when you build an
Application.

>Before, using the MacTraps w/2.01, I've had relatively small prgms (20-35k) 
>come out 3-8k smaller than they do now under the 2.11 MacTraps.  
>Those numbers add up.

	This is for the simple reason that the modules that you use
from MacTraps are bigger; this isn't the linker's fault. The 2.11 MacTraps
is simply larger than the 2.01 MacTraps.


I agree that it would be desirable to link on a procedure-by-procedure
basis, but there are tradeoffs: project files will get bigger, and
build times will get slower.

		--Rich

**The opinions stated herein are my own opinions and do not necessarily
represent the policies or opinions of my employer (THINK Technologies, Inc).

* Richard M. Siegel | {decvax, ucbvax, sun}!harvard!endor!singer    *
* Customer Support  | singer@endor.harvard.edu			    *
* Symantec, THINK Technologies Division.  (No snappy quote)         *